Orion Zoom Meeting of 6pm, March 16, 2021, Regarding Development Proposal 19-0256
Note that the intent in documenting the following is all about precedence. Decisions by Surrey related to this development will most likely have a future impact on all the neighbours along 196 Street, both North and South of 36 Avenue.
Notes by Nigel Bell
Braden Smith Pre-Construction manager of Orion hosted the meeting. Kevin Shackles represented City of Surrey, Project Planning. Sheena Fisher and Kevin Wells attended for Parks. Janelle Frank for Transportation. Cedar Coast were identified as the developer. Kim Richter, Township of Langley councillor, attended briefly.
This meeting only concerned issues related to the Surrey development at the corner of 196 St and 36 Ave. and along 196 St. and the impact on the residents of Langley. This was a carefully controlled Zoom meeting. The format was first a presentation of the Orion plans for construction, followed by an invitation for participants to ask questions via the chat option in Zoom. No dialogue was permitted. City of Surrey representatives were invited to comment on questions related to the City. Approximately 28 participants attended.
Questions and Answers.
Buffer Allowances:
Why has Surrey not made the same allowances as on 192nd Street? Not really answered satisfactorily. Not stated, but probably in hindsight this would have been implemented.
20 Meter vs. 30 Meter Buffer
Why does Orion need 20 instead of 30 meter setback? Basically, the City feels it's enough. However, currently 20 meters is just a proposal according to Kevin, and council will need to consider it. It is also understood that no alternative plans have been developed for the 30 meter buffer. We learned that apparently the Township of Langley council has resolved that the buffer should be held at 30 meters. Concerned citizens need to undertake a letter writing campaign to hold the line on 30 meters. It is understood that Surrey Council will discuss this in early April.
Sidewalks and Bikeways
Will there be sidewalks and bikeways on 36th and 196 Streets? Yes, but adjacent to the property, not in the buffer. The City provided assurance that no foot or vehicle access will be permitted through the buffer onto 196 St.
Additional Development
What plan is in place for the Surrey property North of 36 Ave? No plans currently. Also, asked if there was development planned for south of this development, the City advised that this is privately held and nothing south is planned.
Trucking and Traffic Impacts
Will 36 Ave be upgraded for trucking? Will trucks be permitted East of 196 St.? Apparently, trucks moving north from this development will not be permitted to turn right onto 36 Ave. And trucks arriving from Langley on 36 Ave would not be permitted to turn left into the development. Langley residents on 36 Ave. may have to endure increased truck traffic going west into Surrey. Don't know if 36 Ave in Langley is a designated truck route. Will 36 Ave be dead ended at Langley? No Plan to dead end 36 ave. Will 195 St. go south to 32 Ave? Yes, and this will support traffic leaving the development. Asked about speed limits on 196 St., the City advised that no changes are planned.
Noise
What noise allowances, such as air conditioning and venting have been made? The City indicated that no further regulation on noise has been provided and that this is a multi-tenant development, so each tenant will have different requirements. Possibly, this is a building management issue. In response to a question about trucking noise and attenuation, Kevin said that possibly a sound attenuation wall could be something to consider. A continuous wall between buildings A and B facing 196 St. would help.
Lighting
Asked about lighting of the property, the City provided assurance that there would be no light pollution outside the property. However, truck headlight pollution protection was raised, so mitigation steps by the City are being considered.
Parallel Parking
Discussion about the anticipated parallel parking along 196 St. resolved that the residents don't want it.
The meeting ended at 8pm
Nigel
These are the meeting notes from Bredan Smith of Orion.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
1. Question: What type of businesses will be located within the proposed buildings?
Answer: The uses allowed within the IB-2 zone will include light impact industrial, warehouse and distribution.
2. Question: How will truck (loading vehicles) access the site?
Answer: All truck (loading vehicle) access has been strategically designed so it is located along the western edge of the property line, away from the industrial/ residential interface along 196 Street. Trucks will enter eastbound from 36 Avenue and exit westbound along 34a Avenue. 34a Avenue is proposed to be constructed through this development and will connect to the existing 194 Street.
3. Question: Will there be added vehicle congestion along 196 Street?
Answer: There will be no site access along 196 Street for our proposed development. Passenger vehicle access is located on 36 Avenue and 34a Avenue. 196 Street is not designated as a truck route, and we have specifically designed site access locations so trucks cannot exit on to 36 Avenue. With this proposed development we will be constructing 34a Avenue, which will connect to 194 Street and create additional entrance and exits to the site. If there will be any added vehicle congestion along 196 Street, it would be limited to passenger vehicles and considered minor compared to its current condition.
4. Question: Will there be street parking located along 196 Street?
Answer: All parking that will be required for the use of this proposed development will be located on site. Note that on-street parking will be delivered for this project where the proposed tree retention does not create a curb bulge to protect retained trees. The on-street parking does not count towards the number of spaces required for on-site parking for the proposed development.
5. Question: What would be included in the road upgrades along 196 Street?
Answer: The road upgrades along the western side of 196 Street is shown below. Please note the sidewalk will meander in specific locations to allow for the retention of trees fronting 196 Street.
1.8m sidewalk
1.0m landscape strip
Lamp standards
1.5m cycle track (bicycle lane)
3.5m pavement reinstatement
6. Question: What is the plan for lighting the parking lot and buildings?
Answer: The proposed development is anticipated to be LEED certified. One of the requirements for this certification is to ensure all lighting stays within the property so there will be no light pollution or light that extends outside the property lines. Our current design allows for building mounted LED light fixtures. For street lighting along 196 Street, Surrey’s street lights use flat glass fixtures and directional LEDs to focus the light intensity where it needs to be on the road. Surrey also uses LED lights with a colour temperature of 4000K
lights (the same colour of light emitted by the moon on a clear night) on arterial and collector roads.
7. Question: Where will the truck access and loading be located within the site?
Answer: Truck access will be limited to the NW site along 36 Avenue. There will be a one-way drive isle along the western edge of the property for trucks to access the central loading court. Trucks will then exit at the SW side of the site via the proposed 34a Avenue that will be constructed with the development. Through the design development, no trucks will be able to exit from 36 Avenue. Please see the site plan and context plan for further details of the truck routes.
8. Question: Will the existing trees along 196 Street be retained?
Answer: All existing trees along 196 Street that are feasible for retention will be retained through the development. Conditions that would result in the tree being designated as unsuitable for retention include the health of the tree and if they conflict with road dedications required for the 196 Street upgrades (sidewalk & curb locations, etc.). We have been working with the City of Surrey to adjust 196 Streets road upgrades to retain as many of the trees as possible. This includes meandering the sidewalk around existing trees. When our clients acquired the properties included in the proposed development, it was evident that the previous land owners completed some unauthorized work within the properties. This includes installing topsoil berms along the perimeter of the site along 196 Street. These berms were installed around the existing trees burying the roots and base of the trees. This can cause serious damage to the health of the trees. We immediately obtained the required approvals through the City of Surrey to remediate the damage that was caused. This included removing the topsoil berms from the tree locations along 196 Street under strict
supervision of a certified arborist. Fortunately, after the remediation was completed and an impact assessment was completed, most of the trees along 196 Street were deemed suitable for retention. If the trees were left in the previous condition, their survival rate would have been low.
9. Question: What is included in the proposed landscape buffer?
Answer: The proposed landscape buffer will include the retainage of existing trees, complimented with a dense combination of new deciduous and coniferous trees, shrubs, perennials, ground covers, grasses, and meandering berms roughly 1-1.5m in height.
10. Question: How tall will the buildings be?
Answer: The warehouse portion of the buildings will be 41’-10” in height. Near the office locations the height varies with a max height of 45’-0”.
11. Question: What is the colour scheme of the buildings?
Answer: Building A fronting 36 Avenue will be a combination of white, light grey and dark grey with complimentary dark blue accents. Building B fronting 34a will be a combination of white, light grey and dark grey with complimentary green accents.
12. Question: When is construction anticipated to begin?
Answer: Construction is anticipated to begin in September – October of 2021.
13. Question: Will the buildings be visible from 196 Street?
Answer: Building A fronting 36 Avenue is expected to be screened by the retained trees within the landscape buffer. There are no existing trees located further south along 196 Street that can be retained, and until the newly planted trees are grown to maturity the upper half of Building B is expected to be visible from 196 Street.
14. Question: Who is developing this project?
Answer: Cedar Coast is the developer for this project. They are a Vancouver, BC based real estate development and investment firm that has been in business for over 18 years.
Bredan Smith
Several of the Slides Provided by Orion:
